


How To Heal A Spider

by ElliotOrion



Series: The Spider Project [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, BAMF Peter Parker, Bullying, Derogatory Language, F/M, Flash Thompson Being A Jerk, Flash Thompson Bullies Peter Parker, Genderfluid Loki (Marvel), Hydra Peter Parker, M/M, Ned Leeds is a Good Bro, No Smut, Nothing goes too far though trust me, Peter Parker Has Panic Attacks, Peter Parker's Field Trip to Stark Industries, Precious Peter Parker, Sensory Overload, Soft Peter Parker, Special education, past that is but thats not a tag now is it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-02
Updated: 2020-06-26
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:28:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24506941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElliotOrion/pseuds/ElliotOrion
Summary: Peter Benjamin Parker, formally known as Spider from Hydra's cruel Spider Project to turn infants into super assassins, has been living with the Avengers for two years now. He'd like to think he's doing pretty good by now. He's only accidentally stabbed people twice in the past few months, and Clint had it coming. But when he finds out that most normal fourteen-year-olds are going to high school, he can't help but want to go too, even if he may have been raised with Hydra. If he can handle sparring with the Hulk, surely he can handle a bunch of teenagers, right? Right?--Or, Part Two of the Spider Project series. Reading the first part is highly recommended, however, a recap is in Chapter 1.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark
Series: The Spider Project [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1725457
Comments: 77
Kudos: 668





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Spider Project Recap: In Part One, Peter was raised with Hydra from birth to twelve years old as the super-assassin "Spider", trained to kill and go on missions, and was badly abused. When his heat hit in the middle of a mission to kill the rogue Winter Soldier, the Avengers showed up and brought him to safety at the tower away from his Handler and the creepy Doctor. After slowly gaining his trust, Tony and Pepper adopted him, Peter found a better name than "Spider," and learned to accept his new family and learn to have a life outside Hydra's abuse. You really should read the first part, but that's the general information you need to understand this part is you don't want to deal with the potentially triggering aspects of Part One.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we're back with Part Two: High School Boogaloo! Like the first part, this will be updated twice a week, Tuesdays and Fridays, and is fully completed. Trigger Warnings will be put at the start of each chapter but this one has way fewer triggers. Oh, and we finally get some Ned, MJ, and May action! Yay!!! I've been very excited to start this part honestly, I think it's my favorite. But I've always had a soft spot for field trip fics (even if it is only the last few chapters). 
> 
> That said, let's begin! No trigger warnings for this chapter.

“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Peter, happy birthday to you!” The Avengers all sing, horribly off-key, out of sync, and cut through by the excited squeal of now two years old Morgan. Everyone cheers as Peter blows out the candles on the sinking cake in the center of the table, a valiant attempt by Clint and Sam and saved by Natasha who was the only one to remember the eggs. 

“Whaddya wish for, whaddya wish for?” Morgan tugs on his sleeve, standing up on the chair to reach him. 

“If I tell you, it won’t come true, _luch bheag,_ ” Peter laughs, tickling her as he glances up to Steve to make sure he got the pronunciation right. He’d been teaching Peter Irish, like his mom used to speak in the house, just to keep the language alive and continue the tradition. He’s been catching on quick, he always does with languages, but it’s always good to check.

“Oh…”

“Is the cake even safe to eat?” Tony eyes the thing, covered in melting frosting. 

“No, it’s horribly underbaked.” Natasha shakes her head before pulling out an ice cream cake from the freezer. “Luckily I made a backup.”

“Oh thank god.” Pepper sighs, leaning against Tony. “Sorry boys.”

“Nah, we told her to. After the third time spraying the kitchen with batter we figured it was going to go badly.” Clint runs his hand through powdered sugar-coated hair. “Sorry, Pete. We tried.” 

“Next time, let Steve do it?” Bucky snorts. Sam flips him off. 

“Children present!” Tony covers Morgan’s eyes. Bucky covers Steve’s, which gets a lot of playful shoving between the two. 

Peter just laughs at the chaos, sinking into his chair next to Morgan. The noise and chaos of the Avengers all gathered together no longer leaves him tense and terrified. Seeing Bucky no longer fills him with resentment, just like he no longer hesitates to take his pill and dig into the cake given to him, knowing that he doesn’t need permission to eat or pull a snack from the fridge. He’s not on edge thinking about whether or not they’ll attack him or kick him out or trap him in his room. He trusts every single person around him, scrambling for cake and arguing about who has the bigger slice.

Steve was right, that day in the gym. He’d come home, and there was nowhere he’d rather be. 

Everyone takes their cake to the living room, where Morgan proudly runs about bringing Peter the presents they’d piled up on the coffee table. Most of them turn out to be new sweaters to help him build his still tiny wardrobe, and a few stuffed animals - a cat that purrs and has a heartbeat, another that he can stick in the microwave, and one massive squid that he could fully wrap himself up in. Wanda sewed it herself, and Peter decides it’s his new favorite, next to his Captain America bear. 

Since that first one, he’d been collecting stuffed animals, naming each and finding unending comfort in sleeping surrounded by them. He got a little self conscious when he turned thirteen last year, knowing by that point it wasn’t exactly normal for teens to have a mountain of dolls. Wanda told him to stop worrying about it. He didn’t have a childhood, so he deserved to make up for it now. 

Sam also got him a complicated Lego dinosaur, which he was ready to start right then and there. Both Bucky and Natasha got him weapons, a set of throwing knives from Bucky, and his own Widow Bites from Nat, because as she says, “You’re a spider too.” 

“Seriously you two? Weapons? I thought I made it clear, no weapons!” Tony whines when he opens those. 

“Tony…” Pepper places her hand on his shoulder. “It’s not like he’ll hurt himself on them.”

“Fine,” he grumbles. “But keep them away from Morgan, okay?” 

“Sure dad,” Peter says, so distracted by weighing the knives balance that he doesn’t actually notice Tony tearing up. 

“Well, I think it’s time for Morgan’s nap, so we’ll be heading out,” Pepper laughs a little, picking up the grumbling, yet yawning, toddler. “Thanks, everyone for a good party.”

“Thanks, mom,” Peter leans over the couch with a smile. 

“Of course, Peter. Happy birthday, and remember, we’re going out to your favorite restaurant tonight.”

“Oh heck yea!” A few people laugh at his excitement. Everyone starts breaking off from the group, though Natasha stays to help show him how the Widow Bites work down at the gym. 

A few hours later, Jarvis reminds him to get ready for dinner, and then the four of them are piling into one of Tony’s cars to head down to the little diner down the road. Steve and Bucky were the first ones to take him here, though apparently most of the Avengers visit frequently. They’ve got a menu bigger than he ever thought could exist, full of food he’s never heard of, some that sound good, some that only Clint would enjoy. As Bucky said, what better place to try new things than the place that has everything?

Tony hates the damn place. He says the only thing worth having is the milkshakes. 

They have excellent milkshakes. 

The waitress recognizes them as soon as they walk in, taking them to the table the Avengers normally sit in, one near the back exit. Most of them like being away from windows and near an escape route, so they’d requested the massive corner booth so many times that the staff just know by now. 

“It’s my birthday, Janis,” Peter grins up at the old beta waitress. 

“Oh really? Well, I think that calls for a treat don’t you?” She laughs. “How about I bring you some cake once you’ve eaten dinner? We’ve got that triple chocolate one you loved so much.” Peter looks over to Pepper, who laughs. 

“Sounds great. Thank you Janis.” 

“Anything for our favorite customer.” She winks. “I’ll go get you four some water, okay?” 

“Can I has cake?” Morgan gasps.

“You can share some of mine,” Peter nods. 

“Yay! Cake!” 

“She’s never going to bed tonight,” Tony sighs. 

“Oh she will, once the sugar crash hits.” They laugh, though Morgan doesn’t seem to know why. 

Peter learned what a sugar crash was on his first Halloween, which was a horrible, month-long nightmare of feeling both anxious at all the weird new decorations popping up and at him everywhere he went, and wildly annoyed at inaccurate blood and skeletons. It was the first time he went trick or treating, which didn’t go all that well and he wound up retreating back to the tower to hand out candy with Bucky, Steve, and Natasha, who aren't a fan of the excessive jump scares around town. He snuck so much from the bowls that he passed out. 

It was amazing.

The bell by the door rings as a group of kids about Peter’s age walk in, one of them complaining about the amount of homework a teacher gave him while another, with her face in a book, tells him he’s being dramatic. The four of them have backpacks on, and when they get seated around a table, pull out books and pencils. 

“What grade are they in?” Peter frowns, watching the kids. 

“Huh? Oh. They’re probably freshman, wouldn’t you say Tony?” Pepper asks. Tony nods, turning to his menu.

“Is there anything here that’s not deep-fried?”

“Rich boy,” Peter coughs, not really hiding his comment. Tony flicks the side of his head, which just makes him laugh more. 

Janis comes to collect their orders - Peter’s trying a BLT this time - but Peter can’t stop watching the other kids. They’re flicking erasers and a folded up piece of paper between each other, the girl who came in with the book telling them to knock it off and do their work. She looks scary, scary enough that the other two settle down, though only for a little before they’re shoving each other again. The fourth, the one who walked in upset about workload, is not doing his work but is instead reading a comic. Peter can see well enough that he knows it’s a Captain America one. 

He doesn’t need to read the comics. He gets the real deal every day, and he’s a lot less impressive than the comics make him seem. 

“Peter, you seem distracted. Is everything okay?” Tony places a hand on his arm, jerking him back to their table. The food’s somehow already come by then. He really was distracted. 

“Yea, I just… I… normal kids got to school when they’re my age, right?” 

Pepper and Tony share a look, before Pepper says, “yes, fourteen-year-olds are usually starting high school now. But Peter, you’ve already got an intelligence way beyond normal freshman.”

“Is that why I’m not in school? Or is it because…” He trails off. Because he was raised with Hydra. Because he’s dangerous. Because he wouldn’t fit in. 

“Well… High school is rough, kid. Other kids can be really mean, and it’d be hard for you to adjust, not just with the other students but to how it works, since you’ve never been in school before. Since you’re already far more advanced in math and science, the grandpas have been helping you catch up with history, and Wanda has been teaching you English… we didn’t feel the need to push you to go to school.” Tony shrugs. 

“If I wanted to… could I? I mean, I know that it’d be hard, and I - I know I don’t know how to interact with people my age… I don’t even know what being a teenager is supposed to be like beyond what I see in movies… but… I’d like to have friends. Friends my age. I’d like to… I want to be normal. You know?”

“We understand. How about we talk about this some more later, okay? Maybe with your therapist, and see if she thinks your ready. It’d be a big step, you know.” Pepper gives his hand a squeeze. 

“And do you… do you think I’m ready for that?” Peter whispers, half afraid of what she’ll say.

“Yea, Peter. I do.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yayy first day of school!! A couple of notes before this chapter gets started though. For one, Peter gets put in the special education department because he got fucked over in the social skills and "how does being a teenager work" area by Hydra and they need a not-Hydra related reason for this. I'm aware he does not have all symptoms of a nonverbal learning disability, which is what they tell the school he has, because he does not have one and I'm not trying to say or write it as though he does. They just need a cover story. Also, I was not in the special education department, but I did have a 504 plan in high school and helped out with my school's Unified gym and art classes. I've based both the layout of the school and the special ed room on my high school for a few reasons. Namely, my own ease, because my school had a very good special ed program and I want Peter to be well taken care of, and because I don't want to misrepresent anyone so I'd rather use what I know. The special ed students in the story, namely Sara, who you'll meet in this chapter, are based on students I was friends with and helped out for multiple years. I've changed all their names for privacy. If you feel I've misrepresented a disability please, please, please let me know and I will go back and edit it. 
> 
> Also, we get May and good boy Ned!!!! What, you didn't think I'd make a Peter story without working May in there somewhere did you?? I love her! So yes, that's fun. Thank you to everyone who read and commented on the first chapter, I really appreciated all of it!!

As it turns out, his Shield appointed therapist, a sweet omega named Lucy who he sees once or twice a week thinks he’s ready too. 

“We’ve made great progress in a lot of ways, but your social development is still largely stunted because you haven’t been able to interact with kids your age. Your family has been excellent at adjusting you to life outside Hydra, but now you need to learn how to live in the world as yourself, to start and move past the damage they did, not just fix it. Going to school would be the perfect way to achieve this.” Lucy tells him. 

“How do you think we can make the transition easier?” Pepper asks, squeezing his hand with a proud smile. 

“I’d talk with the special education department. I’ll write a letter, and we can definitely get him set up with a 504 or other plan and some accommodations. I’m thinking a quiet place to retreat to if you get overloaded, and definitely permission to wear your earbuds in class. You can adjust the volume, right?” 

“Yea,” Peter pulls the pair out of his pocket. “I used the same tech for Clint’s hearing aids, you can increase the input so I can still hear conversations without background noise.” 

“We will get those approved then. I’d also like to request a guide to help you out the first week, allowing you to pick where you sit in the classroom, help with making an organizational system, and if possible some help with social cues and peer interaction in whatever way they think is best.” 

“We can’t tell them about Hydra though. Right? We can’t.” Peter frowns.

“We can tell them you have a nonverbal learning disorder and have been home-schooled up until now. It’ll explain uncertainty in social situations and confusion with the school process. I’ll write a letter.” Lucy gives him a reassuring smile. 

“Now all that’s left is to find a school, huh?” Pepper laughs. 

“I may have an idea for that…” Tony looks a bit sheepish. “I also may or may not have had this idea for a year now.” 

“Where are you thinking, Mr. Stark?”

“Midtown High.”

A week later, Peter is sitting beside Tony, Pepper’s hands a reassuring weight on his shoulders. He’s in the Principal’s office at Midtown High School, a STEM school that Tony says “at least won’t bore you to death,” waiting for the principal himself to stop freaking out with the secretary over Tony Stark sitting in his office. Peter can hear it all, and it’s taking a lot of effort to not laugh. 

At first, they considered lying, having Happy or someone else pretend to be Peter’s parents instead of drawing so much attention to himself as being the ward of the Starks themselves. But he doesn’t mind the extra bit of attention, not if it means that his parents can be with him during this. He’s already going to be lying about most of his life, he’s not sure he could manage absolutely everything being a lie anyways. The office staff have already signed a bazillion or so NDA's, so this won't get out to the press.

The principal steps through the door, with another woman behind him. The woman looks really nice, with nice brown hair and a warm smile. She smells a bit like apples, and a lot like strawberry ice cream, and he decides he likes her. 

“Sorry for the wait, Mr. and Mrs. Stark, I had to help a student with something,” the nice woman apologizes, shaking Tony and Pepper’s hands. “I’m May, I’m head of the special education department here…. You must be Peter.” She turns to him. 

“Y-yea.” He squeezes Tony’s hand a bit tighter. 

“Nice to meet you, Peter. I’m looking forward to getting to know you, you sound like an incredible young man.” She shakes his hand too, before sitting down in a chair by the wall. 

“Right, well,” the principal, Mr. Jim Morita from the name tag on his desk, clears his throat. “How about we get started? First of all, welcome to our school, Peter. We’re all happy to have you. I’ve already talked quite a bit with your - ah - your parents, and May here has been in contact with your therapist, so we’ve got things all sorted out. Your teachers have been briefed on your accommodations, so hopefully, there won’t be any problems. Here’s your schedule.” Mr. Morita passes him a piece of paper with class names and room numbers. 

Advanced Calculus, Advanced Chemistry, Bioengineering, Chinese 1, Lunch, World History, and British Lit. 

“I already speak Mandarin.” Peter tugs on Tony’s sleeve.

“You also already speak Spanish, Latin, French, and German, we rolled a die.” Tony winks. 

“You need to take four language credits to graduate, so I’m afraid you’ll have to deal with review.” Mr. Morita shrugs. “Once you are a junior, you can start taking Independent Studies and Internships for credit, so we can hopefully offer you more challenging work then.” 

“Alright.” Peter sighs. He already knows bioengineering, he made Bucky’s arm for god's sake! And he’s been doing calculus since he was eight! He made his web fluid when he was six, so he sure as hell can do chemistry too!

But going to school isn’t for challenging his mind, he’s got to remember that. It’s for learning to be normal. It’s so he can make friends and figure out what a real teenager should be like. The academics are secondary. 

“We’ve got a student picked out who has the majority of your classes, just not Chinese or Bioengineering I think. He’ll help show you around for most of the day. I’ll swing by during the third and fourth periods to show you to those classes since he can’t. How does that sound?” May asks. 

“Good.”

“Great. Do you want to come with me, and I’ll show you the special ed room? It’s nice and quiet there, and you can come to hang out there whenever you need it, even if you need to leave class for it. The student will be meeting us there to take you to the first period.” They got here early to meet with the principal. Pepper didn’t really like waking up that early. 

Tony and Peter spent the whole night in the lab.

“Is that okay?” Peter looks up at Pepper. 

“Of course. Have a great day Peter, and make sure you call us if you need anything, okay? We can always send someone to get you if you need.” Pepper gives him a great big hug.

“Anything you need, just let us know, alright?” Tony hugs him too. Peter’s not ashamed to admit he clings a bit longer than he probably should.

“I know. Thanks dad.” 

“Got your bag? And your lunch? And all your gear?” Tony eyes the backpack Peter swings onto his shoulder, that Peter has double and triple checked that morning. And another two times in the car. And possibly once more while they were waiting for Mr. Morita. 

He's a lot more nervous than he's letting show. But if he starts acting nervous, then Tony will start acting nervous, and then he'll never make it to first period without his parents doing something overly dramatic.

“Yep. Bye mom, bye dad,” Peter waves, before following May out of the office. 

“Are you okay, Peter?” May checks. 

“I think so. Yea. I’m okay.” He nods. 

“Good. Let’s go,” May leads him out of the office, out to the big central room of the school. Down a few steps is a big open space with dozens of chairs and tables. There’s the actual food part tucked into the back. One of the janitors is pulling up the metal grate locking it in, while various people in mesh caps start setting up what smells like breakfast. Steve made him chocolate chip pancakes this morning, though, so he’s not hungry. 

The “atrium,” as May calls it, breaks off into a few different hallways. Down one is the English and Languages wing, apparently, while the hallway to his right goes into the Math wing. She says that upstairs is the Technology and History ones. The hallway behind them, the one nearest the office, is the Robotics and Science wings, which she says are separate from the others because of how many power tools and explosions are there. 

“Do explosions happen a lot?”

“Let’s just say that I avoid that wing if I can. It always smells weird and I don’t trust some of these kids not to accidentally mix things they shouldn’t have.” May gives him a wink. 

“Here’s our rooms. The hallway connects to both of the halls, the one for the English Wing and the one for the Math wing, so you can always get to here quickly. There’s also a computer lab for the non-programming classes and the teachers' lounge. It’s usually a pretty quiet hall.”

“That’s good.” He’s already hearing the noise building up as the students start gathering in the atrium, waiting to go to class. Thank god he got approved for his earbuds, which now look a lot more like hearing aids. He changed it earlier in the week, just to stop anyone from complaining about him wearing them. 

“Yep. You are far from the only one here who doesn’t like a lot of noise, trust me.” She laughs, opening the door they’ve stopped in front. Number 104. He can remember that. He can remember almost everything. 

One of Hydra's experiments gave him eidetic memory, which was part of why they never succeeded in wiping him. He both loves it and hates it. He can remember every horrible thing they ever did to him in excruciating detail, but he can also remember exactly how his octopus stuffed animal feels wrapped around him, and how amazing Steve’s barmbrak tastes. It’s his mom’s recipe. 

It’s really, really nice. 

The special ed room is really, really nice too. There’s a mini kitchenette, with a two-burner stove, for “group lunch days,” and a table surrounded by chairs with tennis balls on the feet, to stop them from squeaking. One of them has some tennis balls in the chair itself too, which looks really interesting. There’s a standing desk in one corner, along with a few normal ones next to it, with different laminated papers taped to them. A whole bunch of posters line the walls, things like multiplication tables and formulas for basic math problems. 

Through an open doorway is a circle of comfy sofas and bean bag chairs on a green carpet. On the walls are shelves with art supplies, educational games, Lego sets, and there’s a big basket of various fidgets and sensory toys in the corner. There are a few cubbies on the far wall, just open square cabinets. Some have stuff in them, like a jacket or pair of shoes, but otherwise, they are empty for now.

Peter goes to sit on one of the bean bag chairs, by the fidget toy basket. Just to look through it, see which ones he likes. Bruce, Tony, and Peter all have various fidget toys, so he’s curious if any of these are ones they don’t have. 

He decides his favorite is a little gecko with shiny fabric. It’s weighted and sits nicely on his knee. He always likes the weighted ones.

“Do you like that one?” May asks. 

“Yea.” He nods. “I like dolls. I have one in my bag, just in case I get stressed or feel unsafe.”

“I’m glad you have one of your coping skills with you. If you ever feel unsafe though, can you promise you’ll come here, or tell a teacher? Unsafe is definitely not something you should be feeling here.” May frowns a bit. 

“I will. I’m not expecting any attacks, I just don’t feel safe in unusual environments.” Peter shrugs. 

“Okay, well. We still don’t want you to have to deal with that on your own, right?” Before Peter can respond, the door opens and two other students come in, talking to each other. 

“Sara, Luna, welcome!” May goes over to greet them. Peter probably should too, but he’s not exactly sure how to. Adults usually say it’s a pleasure to meet you and shake your hand, but that’s not how the teenagers in the cartoons he watches do it. They usually just say “hey” or something, but they also usually know each other, so he’s not sure how he should introduce himself to another student. 

Just “My name is Peter?” “Nice to meet you, my name is Peter?” “Hey, I’m Peter?” 

He’s just going to wait for May to introduce him to the kid who’s going to be showing him around. Or for one of the girls to introduce themselves, so he can see how it’s done. 

“Hi! I’m Sara.” Thankfully, one of the girls skips over, sitting on the couch next to him. She hasn’t presented yet, but her weak scent is gentle and faint. Peter always prefers that to the overbearing and intense scents of the alphas, so he immediately likes her, just for that. Also, she looks nice and has an Avatar the Last Airbender shirt on. He watched that with Sam and Steve and Bucky, and it was one of his favorite shows they’d watched so far. 

“Hi, I’m Peter.” Sara's smile grows. He did it right. Thank god. 

“You’re new here?”

“Yea.” He nods. 

“Here,” Sara pulls out a handful of glitter pens. The caps have little gemstones on the end. 

“Huh?” 

“You’re new, so you can have one of my pens. Just for the day. They’re mine so I wan’ them back,” she pushes them in his face a bit more. 

“Can I have the - the green one?” He touches the green glitter pen. It's dark, but the gem on the end is light green. He likes the contrast. 

“Mmhm!” Sara passes him the pen, grinning. 

“Thank you.” He smiles too. “I’ll make sure to give it back.”

“You better.” She nods, before jumping back up and running over to a lady who walked in, talking about something he can’t quite make out. 

“Peter?” May walks into the room with the couches, a boy trailing behind her. He… he recognizes the guy. He’s the one who was reading the Captain America comic at the diner on his birthday!

“I know you!” He gasps. 

“You do?” The kid frowns. 

“Well, I’ve seen you.” He stands up. “Hi, I’m Peter.”

“I’m Ned. I’m going to be showing you your classes, right?” Ned looks up at May. 

“Yep. Ned’s in a lot of your classes, and he’s offered to answer any questions you have. He’ll help introduce you to your teacher too,” May tells him. “You two should get going to class now. Peter, you can wait until after the bell rings and the halls clear as part of your plan, but you don’t want to be too late, okay?” 

“Okay, Ms. Parker.” Ned nods. “You’ve got Calc right?” Peter nods. “Sweet! That’s with Mr. Law. You’re going to love him, he’s like, the cool grandpa you’ve never had, you know?” Peter doesn’t, but he smiles anyway. 

“I’ll see you later, Peter,” May waves as he leaves with Ned. He nods, taking a deep breath before he steps out of the room.

First day of school. He can do this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sara (well, the girl she's based off) was this sweet girl who had down syndrome and we were friends for years. She would let me borrow these pretty pens every time she noticed I was having a bad day, which was admittedly a lot, high school was rough for me, and let me just say it's a lot harder to be upset when you're taking notes in green glittery ink okay? It was always the best part of my day and made me feel so much better so I just really wanted to include that. I don't think she ever quite realized how much that little thing helped, and when I got the idea to have Peter be in special ed I just knew I had to include that somehow. Also, her special interest for a while was A:TLA and we'd talk about it all gym class because it was also my hyper fixation for a good few months. Find yourself someone who shares your special interests because its the best thing ever, just saying. Anyways, shout out to Sara for being the best, and thank you for reading!!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello hello! I have good personal news that i'm really excited to share - I'm publishing my first book July 1st!!! it's called Sparks Fly, and it's an original superhero fiction novel, with an LGBT polyamorous triad and a really diverse set of characters, including asexual, adhd, disabled, poc, and trans main characters!! 
> 
> Over at my Tumblr blog, @elliot-orion, I've got a survey up for deciding on things for the launch party of the book, which will be starting June 24th. This might include a superhero cosplay or original superhero character creation contest, and for sure will include giveaways of LGBT and Marvel merch!! So if you're interested in those, go follow me on Tumblr so you get all the updates!!! Be sure to fill out the survey too so you can place your votes about what contests will be happening, and so you can make sure the items you want will be in the giveaways! You can also go subscribe to my newsletter at elliotorion.com to receive an exclusive look at the first chapter of Sparks Fly once the launch week starts!
> 
> Now, onto the new chapter!! 
> 
> TW: Derogatory slurs (the r word), fat-shaming, and Flash being a dick.

“So Calc is with Mr. Law, he’s really nice but not the best teacher so you’ll wind up teaching yourself a lot of the material which really sucks you know, it’s not easy stuff and all but most of us are on the aca-dec team so we study there, you can join us even if you aren’t on the team don’t worry, also all of us are in Mr. Harrison’s class, your chemistry one, so we kind of just follow each other around in the morning and -”

“You talk a lot.” Peter laughs, interrupting Ned’s rambling.

“Sorry, I’m just excited,” Ned winces, embarrassment staining his scent. He smells like ozone and vanilla, a beta, which Peter is grateful for. Beta’s are nice and even and nonthreatening. Or at least, the ones who aren’t also the Hulk half the time or who can’t shoot a quickly moving target in the eye just by seeing them in a reflection. “Most of us came from Midtown Middle School. New kids aren’t super common, especially halfway through the semester, you know? Speaking of which, why didn’t you join at the beginning of the semester?”

“Oh, there was a family thing.” 

“A family thing? What happened?” 

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Peter frowns. 

“Oh…” Ned whispers, giving him a pitying look. “I’m sorry dude.” Peter’s not sure what he’s saying sorry for, but he’s not going to question it.

Auntie Nat helped him with his cover story and responses to different questions. She said keep it vague and just mention a family thing or a family emergency if someone asks why he started late, and then say he doesn’t want to talk about it while frowning. She didn’t tell him why he had to say that, but it worked, apparently.

Auntie Nat is always right, after all. 

“You’re late Ned.” A middle-aged Beta steps out of the classroom Ned seemed to be leading him too. The door is covered in printed out math jokes. Peter’s heard most of them. Tony’s not nearly as funny as he thinks he is, especially not after the fourth time telling the same Einstein joke. 

“Mr. Law, this is Peter. I’m showing him around and he’s allowed to show up a few minutes after the bell, right?” Ned turns to him. 

“Right.”

“Ah, that’s right! Peter Parker! Glad to have you join us! Why don’t you head in and get settled, I’ve got to go print off the notes. I forgot.”

“Again?” Ned asks. 

“What can I say? I’m a forgetful old codger and we all know it,” Mr. Law laughs, throwing his head back. His wire-rim glasses nearly fall off his face as he does, before he heads down the hall.

“He never remembers to print his lecture notes. Still not sure why he bothers with them anyways, he never gets halfway through the darn things.” Ned shrugs. “Come on, I’ll introduce you to Michelle!” The two of them head through the door and into the classroom. 

“Glad you finally decided to join us, Ned,” a boy sitting on a desk sneers, hopping down. “Did you need help rolling down the hall?”

“Shut up, Eugene,” A girl in the corner doesn’t look up from her book, but Peter recognizes her anyways. She’s the girl from the diner! And the two boys sharing notes in the back, those were the other two! 

He really wants to talk to them, but first…

“Did you just make fun of Ned?” Peter asks this Eugene guy, head tilted to one side. 

“Yea? So what if I did? You got a problem with that? Retard?” Eugene saunters over, smirking as the burnt scent of aggression flares so strong it has to be intentional. He’s posturing, and badly. Steve’s an expert at making others feel intimidated, and he never does it like Eugene is, sticking his chest out and puffing up like a scared cat.

Peter decides he really doesn’t like this kid. 

“Leave him be, Flash.” Ned sighs, taking Peter’s wrist and trying to tug him to the back. Peter doesn’t move. Flash? What a weird nickname. Wanda will definitely laugh at that.

“I do actually. You’re one of those bullies Tony was telling me about, and Steve says we shouldn’t let bullies pick on other people.” Peter grins. “So leave Ned alone.” 

“And if I don’t? What the hell are you going to do about it, pipsqueak?” Flash laughs, looking back at some other boys that Peter decides he also doesn’t like. 

“This.” He grabs Flash’s arm, twists it behind his back, and slams his face into the desk, easy as can be. Flash yelps, struggling against his grip.

“Let me up you freak!” 

“Promise you won’t make fun of my friend anymore?”

“Sure, fuck, fine!” 

“Thank you.” Peter lets go, stepping back next to Ned. The whole class stares at him in complete shock, but he just keeps smiling. Steve was right. Taking down the bullies is very fun. 

“My father will hear about this, Parker.” Flash rolls his shoulder, trying to look like he hadn’t just been squealing against the desk. 

“My father’s Tony Stark. I’m sure he’d love to talk to your dad about how you used derogatory slurs against his son. Tony gets really protective, but Aunt Nat and Bucky get even more so.” Peter smiles pleasantly. 

“Is everything all right in here?” Mr. Law steps through the door. He’s got a slight smile on his face, and Peter knows he saw everything. He must have wanted Flash to get his due too, if he allowed a fight to happen. Though Peter wouldn’t exactly call that a fight. 

If no knives are involved, it’s not a fight, it’s a sparring session. If no punches are thrown, then it’s just playing around. If none of that happens because all he's doing is teaching someone a lesson, then it’s just funny. 

“Yes, Mr. Law,” the girl in the back says. “Flash was just being a bigoted asshole as per usual.” 

“Michelle, please watch your language. Flash, need I remind you of our school’s bullying policy?” Mr. Law frowns. 

“I’m good.”

“Excellent. Now, everyone sit down, we’re already behind schedule.” Ned leads Peter to the back, sitting beside the quiet alpha girl who stood up for him. 

“My name is Michelle,” she nods to him. “Glad someone took care of Flash. If it wasn’t for Ned telling me not to, I’d have broken his nose myself.” 

“MJ, you don’t need another suspension.” Ned hisses. “It’s fine, I can handle it.” 

“Don’t think I haven’t noticed you going into the bathroom to cry when he’s being particularly mean.” Michelle turns to her notebook, decidedly ending that conversation. 

“I don’t - I mean - I’ve never… How do you always know?” Ned whines. 

“Start taking notes, I’m not giving you mine.” 

Ned sighs, pulling out a notebook and pencil. Peter copies him, finding the red notebook that Pepper helped him label Math. She was the one to help him organize his backpack a few days ago. Tony wanted to do it, but Tony wouldn’t know organization if Pepper hit him in the face with a perfectly tabbed and sorted binder. If it wasn’t for Jarvis, he’d be a mess. 

“Does he bully you often?” Peter whispers after a few minutes of hearing Mr. Law talk. He’s well aware of how derivatives work, thanks. Tony was right, this place was going to be boring half the time. Oh well. He’s used to boring. He can’t count the number of missions where he had to wait on a roof or in a tree for hours on end doing nothing but staring down the scope of a gun. If he could handle that, being unable to move even an inch even with his now diagnosed ADHD, and being a ten-year-old, he can handle this, where he’s able to doodle and plan inventions in his notebook and shift about all he wants. 

“Flash? I mean, I’m only one of his targets, but… Yea I guess. Since middle school, really. It’s not the worst, though, his insults aren’t very original.” 

“Just because they aren’t original doesn’t mean that they don’t hurt.” He got called freak, experiment, weapon, all that stuff so many times that he believed them after a while. He was nothing but an object. Only worthwhile for experiments and killing. Not a child, not a person just a… a thing. Not the most original of dehumanization tactics, sure, and it was far from their only one, but…

Somehow the words hurt the most. He recovered from the pain and got used to being allowed things and a voice again. Sure he still has bad days where he can’t help panicking over asking for something or where he’ll shove himself into the closet because he doesn’t deserve his bed. But those days are becoming rarer and rarer. 

It’s harder to dislodge words though. Especially because if you hear those awful insults over and over, every day for years... your own brain starts to call you them. You can get used to a different environment, but stopping your brain from calling you hurtful things is harder. Just because fatass is a lazy insult doesn’t mean that, after hearing it for years, Ned isn’t hurt by it. 

“I know.” Ned lowers his head. “You shouldn’t have hurt him though.” 

“That wasn’t me hurting him. That was me showing him I could.” 

“For a guy who wears such cute sweaters, you’re awfully badass aren’t you?” Ned snorts. 

“You have no idea.” 

“No talking!” Mr. Law calls out over the class. “This is hard stuff, and it will be on the test this Friday, so pay attention!” 

“Test?” Peter frowns. He knows it won’t be like his old tests, where he’d have to kill a child or a puppy to make sure he wouldn’t hesitate to execute Hydra’s vision, or where he’d have his abilities tested until he passed out from holding up a bus for three hours. Tony would never let him into an environment where that’d be the standard test. 

He’s just not sure what this test will be like. He’ll ask someone later. If derivatives are on it, he’s not that worried.

The class ends with a shrieking bell that makes Peter yelp in pain, ducking down with his hands clamped over his ears. Most of the class leaves in a rush, a roar of noise filling the hallway, too loud for his overly sensitive hearing even with the door to the classroom closed. 

“You okay, Peter?” Ned asks, waiting with him. Peter whimpers, nodding as he pulls out his earbuds with shaking hands. 

“What are those?”

“He-hearing aids,” Peter slips them in. 

“You’re deaf? But you haven’t been wearing them this whole time!” 

“Not deaf just - just too sensitive.” Peter gives a weak smile. “I’m okay now.” 

“Oh, alright,” Ned frowns. Aunt Nat warned him that people would give the earbuds weird looks if he didn’t wear them all the time, but he’d forgotten to put them in at the beginning of the day. Too anxious. He gets forgetful when he’s anxious, too busy trying to track all exits, all potential sight lines, any threats, any potential concealed weapons. He’s a bit better, not getting so afraid if it’s somewhere he’s comfortable at, or if he’s got one of his family members with him. 

Not Clint or Bruce though, he’s still on edge with them. It’s not their fault, he loves them so much, but Clint’s too goofy to pay enough attention, and Bruce just has no training with it. He’s a doctor, not a soldier or a spy, so Peter can’t rely on him for situational awareness like the others. That’s okay though. Peter wouldn’t want them to change. 

“Peter, the halls are clear and ready to go,” Mr. Law looks over at them, a reassuring smile on his face. “I hope you have a great rest of the day.” 

“Thank you Mr. Law.” Peter smiles back, grabbing his backpack. 

Ned leads him to their second class, which passes by without anything eventful happening this time, and then May takes him to his other classes. He loves his Bioengineering class, Mrs. Colby hears about how he’s already designed a fully thought controlled prosthetic and begged him to stay after one day so she could see how advanced he is in the subject. She offered to let him use the class as more of a lab if she thinks he already knows everything, which he’s pretty sure he does. He really wants this to be a lab class… 

His Chinese class starts out fun too when he surprises the teacher by speaking fluent Mandarin with her. She throws a bit of a fit asking why he’s in that class, which May has to explain to her. She just shakes her head and decides he’s going to help assist her class and tutor the students instead of being a student. Flash is in that class, and Peter for one is glad to show off in front of him. Plus, tutoring sounds really fun, and certainly more exciting than having to relearn how to count in a language he already knows. 

Then… then comes lunch. The period he’d been worrying about the most. 

Turns out, he’d been right to worry.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is it friday already? Damn this month is flying. This chapter is kind of filler, but kind of not, so I guess that's cool? I don't know, I needed to finish the first day of school before we could get to the fun stuff, so here you go! Also, the science in here is utterly gobbleydook because I'm horrible at science and i got it by like a five-minute google search, so just ignore all of it and call it a day ;) Enjoy!!
> 
> TW: Sensory overload

Peter doesn’t get three feet into the cafeteria before he’s crouched on the ground with his hands over his ears and a high pitched whine in the back of his throat. 

“Peter? Peter are you alright?” Ned kneels down too, having picked him up from his last class for lunch. Peter shakes his head, turning his earbuds up as high as they go to block the noise. It makes things quieter, but it doesn’t stop the vibrations rising from the floor, the mass of movement and colors and visual stimulation, the looks people are giving him from down in the pit of people. 

“Okay, we’re getting you to May,” Ned says. Peter can’t hear it, but he can see his lips moving and gets what he’s saying enough to follow him out of the cafeteria, Ned’s hand on his elbow guiding him away. 

The door to the special ed room closes behind them, sealing out most of the noise, and Peter sighs in relief. 

May comes over, talking briefly to Ned before leading Peter to the soft couch. She kneels in front of him, touching her ears to urge him to let some noise in. He does, albeit reluctantly. 

“Peter, on a scale of one to ten, one being perfectly fine, ten being the worst you can be, how are you doing?” She whispers. 

“Eight.” His head hurts. Even May’s whisper is too loud, and the fabric of the couch hurts and his hair’s too dry against his hand where he still has them clamped around his ears and he’s shaking and it hurts. All this stimulation and color and light and noise and touch it hurts.

“Okay. What’s going to help right now?” 

“Doll.” He whimpers. “Quiet.” 

“Is your doll in your bag?” Peter nods. “Can I get it for you?” He nods again. May carefully opens his bag, pulling out the Iron Man teddy bear Tony got him. He got all the Avenger’s bears on his first Christmas, and he usually has one with him no matter where he goes, even in the tower. They make him feel safer, even if he’s surrounded by his family and perfectly safe.

May puts the doll in his lap and gives him space, telling him to let her know if he needs anything or if he wants to talk. He nods, silencing all noise again. He moves from the couch to the corner, half tucking himself into an empty cubby. There are walls, and he can see the doorway and there’s only one direction that an attack could come from, so he doesn’t need to worry so much about that. He’s already feeling raw and vulnerable enough, with no sound and breaking down a bit. He’ll be okay though. He knows he will. 

Then his watch vibrates a little. It’s the Stark Watch he and Tony modified, to the point it’s barely a Stark Watch anymore. It monitors his heart rate and vitals and sends them to Jarvis, he can get messages, and Pepper and Tony have their own version so he can know if they are safe and they can know if he is. It’s even got a tracker in case of emergencies… they made it last year, when he started leaving the Tower on little excursions more, so he could feel just a bit safer, and Tony could feel a bit less terrified if he wasn’t with him. 

Now a message is lighting up the screen, an incoming video call from Tony. Peter lets his earbuds connect to the watch, so he doesn’t have to hear anything else but can hear Tony, before pulling up the hologram and accepting the call. 

“Kid? Are you okay?” Tony gasps, probably seeing Peter’s tear-streaked face and the bear hugged close to his chest. 

“Yea. Just got overwhelmed. Lunch.” he gives a weak smile. 

“Do you need to bail out? I can be there in a couple of minutes, max.” 

“No, no I’m okay. I’m in the special ed room, and I’m calming down. Doing what Bruce and Lucy told me to do, you know? Deep breaths and - and focusing on one thing and finding a corner. I want to finish the day.” 

“Are you sure?” 

“Yea, dad, I’m sure.” Peter smiles, for real this time. Tony’s always so protective of him. It’s nice. 

“Okay… because you know I don’t mind, and it’s not a big deal, you can try again tomorrow and -”

“Dad…” 

“I know, I know, being too protective again,” he smirks a bit. “You’ve been taking after Pepper too much.”

“I’m still more like you, don’t worry. Morgan’s more like Mom than me. I still have to make my own Dum-E to put out fires, the poor thing can’t handle both of us in the same room.”

“Maybe if he stopped spraying me in the face, he’d be fine.” Tony rolls his eyes as Peter laughs. “You doing a bit better, kid?”

“Yea, I’m alright now. I need to eat lunch though.”

“Alright, I get the hint. Have a good rest of the day. I’ll be picking you up after school, by the way.”

“I’ll look for the obnoxiously colored car then.”

“Just for that comment, I’m bringing the neon pink one.”

“Bye Tony…” Peter snorts, waving to the hologram Tony before ending the call. He turns the volume back on through his earbuds, looking up to see Ned staring in wide-eyed awe from one of the couches. 

“Dude… that was Tony Stark. What the hell, why - how - you know Tony Stark?” Ned squeaked. “And you - you call Tony freaking Stark dad?”

“He adopted me a couple of years ago. He rescued me from a bad situation as Iron Man and decided to take me in. He and Pepper are now my legal guardians, but it’s not really public information because they wanted to respect my privacy.” Peter shrugs. The funny thing is, most of that is true. They did rescue him from a bad situation as part of Avengers' work, they are his legal guardians, and they do want to respect his privacy. 

The news will probably get out in a few days, someone in the school will have loose lips, but he’s still not worried about it. He’s not a fan of the fact that Hydra might find him, but two years of being away have done nothing to stall his training or weaken his abilities. He spars with the Avengers on a daily basis, and Tony’s set up awesome training equipment for him, including an aerial obstacle course with optional enemy simulations. If anything, he’s even more equipped to deal with Hydra if they come. Not to mention he’s got the full force of the Avengers ready to raise hell if they take him. 

And he’s more than capable of handling some reporters. Tony’s made it clear than anyone who wants to bother Peter will have the full might of the SI legal system brought down on them for harassing a minor, and he’s seen the kind of horrible things they say about even the best of the Avengers. They can go after him all he wants, but he’s well prepared for any backlash. 

He doesn’t have any social media anyways, and he doesn’t watch the news unless it’s about his family. Can’t be bothered really, and he is only fourteen so it’s not like it matters. 

Though, it was fun as hell to watch Tony shred Senator Douchebag to pieces on live television… 

“Ohh… That’s awesome dude! I mean, not awesome you had to have Iron Man rescue you from somewhere, I’m sorry whatever that was happened to you, but still, Tony Stark is your dad! Do you know the Avengers? What are they like? Oh my god, have you met Thor? And Captain America? Is Black Widow as scary as she is on TV?”

“It’s cool. Yes, I know the Avengers. They’re all utter dorks and disasters and are people just like everyone else who make mistakes and argue and play Mario Kart. It just so happens Mario Kart winds up in someone throwing a knife or two. Yes, I know Thor and Steve and Nat. I call Black Widow Auntie Nat.” 

“HOLY SHIT!” Ned slaps a hand over his mouth after he yells. “Sorry, sorry, noise, I know, but - but holy shit dude! Black Widow is your Aunt! Wait - do you know Bruce Banner? I’ve read some of his papers and they are so incredible, I mean, his work on gamma rays went badly, sure, but the things he discovered are revolutionary, you know? Maybe not possible to create a super-soldier with yea, but they could be implemented in so many other ways and - “

“I know, I know, I’ve been urging him to try turning them into a way of sustainable energy, they’re so energetic that if we could harness them then maybe we could make energy, and he already found the way to harness them so we’d just need a way to transfer the inherent energy to a usable form - “

“Maybe using photovoltaic cells, but we’d need to heighten the sensitivity by a lot to be able to catch gamma rays, but in theory, it’d work because they already utilize the electromagnetic spectrum - “

“Yea! And -”

“You two sound like you’re having fun,” May leans against the doorway to the couch room, grinning. “I just wanted to let you know that lunch ends in 15 minutes, so you should probably eat, Peter. Your dad made sure we understood how bad you need to eat regularly.” 

“Oh! Thank you May,” Peter laughs, pulling out his lunchbox from his bag. It’s red and blue, Peter’s favorite colors, and has the calorie-heavy granola bars and protein shakes that he and the super-soldiers use. There’s also a brownie and a tub with leftover pasta from last night, and a baggie with two of his pills in there, one for lunch, and one if he needs to eat a snack. 

“Can you warm this up?” He holds up the Tupperware, thanking May for warming it up in the microwave. 

“Are you lactose intolerant?” Ned nods to the pill he swallows dry. “My cousin is and she always forgets to take Lactaid before she eats pizza or something. Well, she doesn’t forget, she doesn’t care, and it’s ridiculous.”

“Celiac Disease and lactose intolerant, actually.” Peter shrugs. Technically not a lie. He does qualify for those, which is why Dr. Cho didn’t mind writing those down on his “official” diagnosis report. His unofficial one has the actual truth that his body probably won’t ever get the proper bacterial and enzyme cultures it needs to digest food on its own. They keep it off the official record though, since they kept the fact Peter was a Hydra weapon secret during the guardianship hearings.

It’s kind of funny, seeing his paper files because Dr. Cho still likes having paper copies of things. Reading a screen all the time hurts her eyes, she says. One of the files is actually three bulging files bound together by a rubber band, and the “official” one is barely an inch thick. Half his issues would make people realize his cover of being an orphan who‘d been homeless since his parents died, and who Tony saved from a collapsing building in some fight or other, was just that. A cover. 

A good cover, of course, it was Nat who designed it. But a cover nonetheless. 

“That sucks, man,” Ned shakes his head. “Can you still eat pizza if you can’t do gluten or cheese?” 

“If I take my meds, then yes.” He nods, finishing off his bowl of newly warmed pasta. He leaves one of the protein bars for the trip back to the Tower but eats the rest of it. With New York traffic it takes over half an hour to get the four miles to the Tower, and he knows he’s going to be hungry again by 3:10 when schools over. 

“That’s good. Denying someone pizza is just pure cruelty.” Ned shakes his head. Technically pure cruelty is electrocuting someone’s brain until they forget their name for no reason besides they feel like hearing him scream is top of the list. But denying someone pizza is pretty high up on there, too. 

The bell rings for their next class, so Peter packs up and leaves with Ned after the halls clear, thanking May for letting him calm down. She says he and Ned can eat lunch in here whenever he wants which… he thinks he’ll take her up on. If Ned’s okay with that.

“Would you be okay if we started eating lunch there?” Peter asks. 

“Peter, I’d be honored, and incredibly happy. Do you know how dreadful the cafeteria is? I get overwhelmed by the noise myself. And the number of insults Flash yells at me. But… could MJ join?”

“Michelle? Sure!” Peter grins. If Michelle is going to join him for lunch, and Ned, then that means he now has three friends! Mary, Ned, and Michelle. Everyone’s going to be so proud of him. 

“Awesome! She’ll love not having to be in the cafeteria, she hates it there even more than I do. It’s too loud for her to focus on her book, and she almost always winds up wanting to punch some kid at the table next to us for saying something racist or sexist or whatever. I can’t hold her back all the time you know?”

“You shouldn’t hold her back at all if they’re being rude.” 

“You sound like her.” Ned snorts. 

The rest of the day goes smoothly. History and Lit are looking like they’ll be the only two challenging classes he has since he’s not actually all that good at either of them. He’d never written an essay in his life until Wanda urged him to try doing one a few months ago. He’s pretty sure it turned out terrible. May told him he could have a History and English tutor if he wanted, and judging from the first class, he’s probably going to take her up on that. He’s so lost already. But at least they are already at World War I in History. 

Who better to teach him then someone who’s lived through it, right? And luckily for him, he knows two people who fit the bill.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehehehe FINALLy we get to start the field trip portion of this!!! ..... all the way in the last paragraph. i swear im getting to it. We just need... a bit of angst in there first :3 MJ and Ned are the bestest friends ever and i love them both. Hope you enjoy this!
> 
> TW: descriptions of pretty intense bullying, like 1 sentence of slut shaming

After two more periods, the school day ends, and Peter waves goodbye to Ned and Michelle. They are staying after for their aca-dec team. They offer to let them join in a session, see if he might want to try out, but he knows Tony is waiting. He’ll ask him if he can join the team later. 

Michelle tells him where the pickup line is, and he heads out to the front of the school where all of the parents have their cars lined up. The buses are in the back, lined up and waiting, but they'd decided Peter would not be riding the bus. No walking or swinging back either, too risky. After the first two days, when Tony will be getting him, either Happy or one of his family would come to drive him back to the tower. He’s more than okay with that. 

Just as he’s about to turn the corner to find Tony’s car, the shiny red peeking out from around the bend, he’s shoved so hard he falls to the dirty sidewalk, scraping his hands. 

“Whoops, sorry… Penis Parker,” Flash waltzes past, laughing at Peter and what’s probably going to be his new nickname. It’s not the worst one, really, at least it’s not a slur like Flash called him earlier. Michelle had filled him on it since he hadn’t actually realized it was so bad.

Ned was right, Flash was unoriginal. 

Peter doesn’t go after Flash, just brushes the rocks off his hands, and finds Tony. He isn’t even bleeding, so he’s fine. 

Flash, however, is not fine. He’s frozen at the corner, mouth moving like a stupid fish at Tony Stark leaning on his open car doorway, looking for Peter, and entirely oblivious to the people taking photos. Those are definitely going on the internet, hopefully along with one of Flash’s little cry of outrage as Tony greets Peter. 

“Hey kid, how was the rest of school?” Tony asks, getting into the car. Peter follows, giving Flash a triumphant smirk first. 

“It was good. I made three friends, and also I stood up for one of them! He was getting bullied but I made the bully stop.” 

“Should I be expecting a lawsuit?” Tony raises an eyebrow.

“No, I don’t think so. I didn’t hurt him anyway, and the teacher saw but didn’t say anything because the kid’s a real jerk. He called me the r-word.”

“Oh, so he really deserved it. Good job kid.” Tony gives him a fist bump. 

“Thanks!” 

“If he keeps being a problem, you let me know, alright? Now, let’s go get some ice cream to celebrate, what do you think?”

“Yes please!” 

They do get the ice cream, Peter getting strawberry with rainbow sprinkles, and Tony getting the most chocolatey sundae on the menu. 

But Peter doesn’t tell Tony when Flash keeps going after him, furious about being humiliated in front of the class. Rumors spread about him getting his ass handed to him by the soft new kid who’s so nice to everyone. Peter gets a reputation for being the sweetest kid in the school, but one who isn’t afraid to stop any bullies. 

The bad thing is, it gets the bullies focused on him. Not just Flash, though he’s the worst of them, but also a few others who decide that Peter’s just too easy of a target since he never stands up for himself. They’ve got to pick on someone, and if Peter hurts them for hurting others, then they’ll do it to him. 

He doesn’t mind. The things they call him are laughably sad compared to what Hydra called him. They’ve never actually managed to hurt him either since he’ll defend himself if they try to take it to the physical level, and it means they aren’t hurting anyone else. It’s no big deal to him, no matter how much Michelle, now MJ, rages about it. Ned always feels bad about it, blaming himself for drawing Flash’s rage towards Peter. 

Peter’s not sure why he’s blaming himself. If that instance with Ned hadn’t happened, then he’d have done the same when some nasty girl knocked Mary’s pens out of her hands and called her too stupid for the school. Even though Peter knew for a fact that Mary knew everything there was to know about animal ecology. Or it’d have been the trans girl who got yelled at by a teacher for using the girl's bathroom, who he’d stood up for just like he’d stand up for anyone else. 

Bullying in the school decreased within the first three weeks of Peter’s being there by a massive amount. Or rather, it didn’t. It was just redirected. 

“I have no idea how you can handle this!” MJ slams her hands onto the lunch table after a third spitball just misses his neck. Spider-sense comes in handy sometimes. The three of them had moved to the fishbowl for lunch, the closed space muffling the noise enough that, with his earbuds, Peter was fine sitting there. And it meant he was more social, which was the point of being here. 

“It’s nothing, MJ.” Peter shrugs. 

“Oh yes, it fucking is. And I’m doing something about it. I can’t just keep watching you get hurt, Peter. You’re too good for your own good, and just drawing the attention to you isn’t solving anything. You can’t tell me this doesn’t hurt you! You’re human, of course, it does!” 

Peter sighs. No, it doesn’t. But she wouldn’t know that, because all she knows is Peter’s cover story. He’s been able to brush off being unaffected by saying his parents had been abusive and then he was homeless and got so many cruel words being called Penis Parker is nothing. But apparently, she’s not buying it anymore. MJ always was hard to fool. 

“It doesn’t.”

“She’s right Peter. Whether or not you acknowledge it, this has got to be bothering you.” Ned shakes his head. Peter kind of wants to scream. Now Ned was ganging up on him? Ned had always been, if nothing else, a silent force when MJ goes off on him.

“It’s not!” If anything it's just annoying. Sure it kind of sucks having to dodge spitballs and have taunts disrupting his thoughts, but he’s really not bothered. 

The only thing that does bother him is Flash’s insistence on saying Tony isn’t his dad, he was just a pity project who’s going to be dumped once Tony realizes how worthless or stupid he is. 

That bothers him. Not because he thinks even for a moment that Tony or the others don’t love him. They’re all family and they make it very clear, albeit in their own, oftentimes dysfunctional, way that they all love each other. It’s more the parts where Flash insults Tony saying he’s stupid for adopting Peter, or that he’s actual Tony’s real son from when, and he quotes “he was such a whore.” And the times when he’ll say that Peter is too much work for them to deal with because he has too many issues… 

Those are what bother him. Not enough to make Flash stop, but enough that he keeps replaying them at night. Tony had never been like that. Sure he was an alcoholic and went to parties too much, but the awful sexual stuff had been just jealous people trying to discredit an omega heir to Stark Industries, one that showed them up even while drunk no less. Peter hates hearing assholes like Flash keep bringing up something that really bothers his dad. 

And he already knows he’s too difficult. Tony worries so much about him, especially in the beginning when he took so much time to adjust. Some days it was like he’d activated even though he hadn’t and Bucky and Steve would have to pin him down to keep him from hurting someone. Sometimes he’d lash out or have hours-long panic attacks. More than once he even tried to run away. Things were far from easy that first year, and they still aren’t easy all the time. He dissociates, he has sensory overloads, he has panic attacks and flashbacks and - and… and he is too much work. Tony shouldn’t have to be stuck with him. 

So yea. Those things fester. But being called Penis Parker, or being told he’s a freak or any of the slurs they like to throw around? He’s not bothered by those beyond being annoyed that some of those words hurt others to hear. 

“Fine, be in denial. But I’m done sitting around having to listen to this.” MJ grabs her tray and her backpack, storming out of the cafeteria. 

“I made her mad.” Peter sighs. 

“Pete, she’s been mad. And honestly, I kind of am too. You won’t let us tell anyone, not even May, and you know she’d raise hell over this.” Ned picks at the bland mashed potato on his tray, unable to meet Peter’s eyes.

“It’d just cause more problems….” He frowns. “I’m sorry though. I didn’t realize hearing this stuff was hurting you too.” 

“See, that’s the thing, though. You only care about the rest of us. Be selfish for a little, okay?” Ned picks up his tray and leaves too, the bell ringing as he closes the door, leaving Peter alone waiting for the halls to clear. They never leave him alone like this. One of them will always walk him to his next class. He’s really hurt his friends… 

Ned won’t talk to him much the rest of the day, and MJ skips the last two classes. She never does that, and he can’t talk to her at aca-dec practice, which he’s officially joined since it doesn’t meet on Tuesdays. It worries him. MJ will not pay a lick of attention in class, but she’ll always show up. She’s up to something. 

He knows enough about MJ to be scared. 

It’s Natasha who picks him up after school, a smile on her face. To anyone else, it’d look real, but Peter is used to her masks by now. She’s angry. 

“What happened?” Peter asks as soon as the doors are closed and she’s pulling out of the parking lot.

“Oh, I just had a very informative chat with someone who says she knows you. Not sure how she got my number, but if she’s friends with you, then I’m sure she has her ways. Though you’re in charge of updating my call filters.” 

“MJ told you.” Peter groans, banging his head against the seat rest.

“And I’m damn glad she did! How long have you been being bullied, Peter? Why the hell didn’t you tell anyone?” 

“It’s no big deal Aunt Nat. If they’re going after me then they aren’t going after other people. I’m pretty sure I can handle some teenagers after handling Hydra, don’t you think?”

“Oh sure, I’m sure you can. Except, this Michelle girl seemed damn worried, and some of the things she told me that they say to you… You know Tony and Pepper love you more than anything, right? All of us do. And you know I’m not great with this shit, but I love you, and we aren’t going to abandon you.” Auntie Nat gives him a worried look. 

“She noticed. Of course, she did.” He rubs his face, filled with both deep annoyance and love for his friend. “That’s the only thing they say to me that bothers me, okay? And when they insult Tony or use slurs, but that just makes me angry not hurt. It’s no big deal.” 

“It damn well is. I’ve already talked to Pepper and Tony, and we will be handling this, whether you want us to or not.” 

“Nat, if they get suspended it won’t stop them and you know it. It’ll make it worse.” 

“Who said anything about suspending them? They’re all on your acadec team, right?” 

“Um… yea, Flash and Susie are on it. Michael isn’t, but he just kind of follows Flash’s lead. Flash is the worst, Susie’s just kind of a bitch.”

“What teenager’s name is Susie? What decade are we in?”

“I think it’s actually Susan but she got tired of all the middle-aged white mom jokes that use Susan.”

“So she decided to be from the nineteenth century?”

“I guess? Anyways, what’s the acadec team have to do with it?”

“Oh you’ll see. Probably tomorrow, you know Pepper works quickly when it comes to you kids.” 

“I should be scared right?”

“Terrified.” Aunt Natasha grins, cold and wicked. 

Peter is definitely, definitely afraid. And definitely fucked. 

Thankfully no one brings it up at dinner, though Peter can sense the tension in the room as half the people fight anger. He’s not sure why no one brings it up, but he’s got the feeling it’s because they are waiting. This is… really not going to go well for him, is it? Flash is so fucked. 

“Thor’s coming with Loki this weekend, by the way,” Tony interrupts the tense silence. “Apparently, they’re better now, but I suggest keeping armor on the whole time they’re here because they have a habit of stabbing people.” 

“Didn’t Loki almost destroy the city last year?” Peter raises an eyebrow. He’d spent the whole thing helping out his family by getting civilians to safety. They won’t let him help out again with any other Avengers nonsense though, which pisses him off. He did great during the battle! He didn’t get injured at all! ... Or at least, not that they know of. 

Just because he snuck out to help without permission or anyone knowing he was going, which by the way, wouldn’t have been as bad as Tony made it seem if he’d gotten hurt because he has Karen in his suit who could put out a distress signal, doesn’t mean he didn’t do a great job and should be allowed to be an Avenger, okay? When has being a kid mattered in letting him fight, huh? He’s more than battle-tested, and there are some fights he should have been allowed to join. 

“Mind control. Apparently the same staff he used against Bird Brain was used on him. Not fully sure how that works, but Thor trusts him.” 

“Thor trusts too easily,” Clint mutters. “I don’t trust that guy.” 

“Yes we know, you have a grudge.” Tony gives him a sympathetic look. “If it helps, I said no, and Thor said he was king and trumped me so Loki was coming. My hands were tied.” 

“Fuck that,” Clint growls, pushing his chair back and leaving the room. Natasha sighs, following him. 

“Well, this has been a lovely dinner, but I have some very important work to finish sorting out, so if you’ll excuse me,” Pepper smiles, leaving the table with Morgan in tow. 

Everyone disbands fairly soon after, dessert forgotten. Tony heads right down to the lab, barely saying a word to Peter. So he goes to Steve. 

“Tony’s mad at me. Everyone is.” He says head hung as he hugs himself. “I didn’t mean to make everyone mad.” 

“Oh…” Steve looks at Bucky. “Come on.” They lead him to their floor, where Bucky brings over a plate of cupcakes that they’d made earlier and apparently just hadn’t wanted to share. 

“Tony’s not mad at you kid,” Bucky says, handing him one with a mountain of frosting, just like he likes. “He’s mad at himself.”

“What do you mean?” Peter frowns, pulling his knees to his chest on the couch. 

“He’s mad that he didn’t notice you were getting bullied. He feels he should have, he’s your dad after all. And you know how much Tony feels he should be the one keeping all of us safe.”

“I didn’t tell him, and I’m damn good at hiding things! If I can walk on a broken leg without anyone noticing it, how is he supposed to know someone called me a name at school? It’s not his fault!”

“He’s not going to see it that way.” Steve shrug. “It’s a parent thing, Pete. They hate seeing their kid get hurt, and they hate when they don’t notice its happening. Think about it. What if Morgan was getting her crayons stolen and broken at daycare every day, but didn’t tell you because she didn’t want to worry you, even though it made her sad? How would you feel?”

“Pissed off.” Peter growls. “And… mad I hadn’t noticed and gotten her more crayons…”

“Exactly. That’s what Tony’s going through.” Steve leans against Bucky’s chest, sighing. “Tony’s not mad at you. If anything, he’s just hurt.”

“Because I didn’t tell him?”

“Because you felt the need to protect him at your own expense. Because you didn’t trust him enough to tell him,” Bucky nods. 

“I trust him! I just… didn’t want to bother him. Or make it worse.” 

“We know. But he knows now, and they’re handling it. And I promise Tony won’t let it get worse.” Bucky grins, the same wicked grin Nat had in the car. “None of us will.”

“No killing Flash.”

“But it’d be so fun…” Bucky whines. Steve slaps his flesh arm, giving him an unamused look. 

“No killing teenagers… just killing their dignity.” Now Steve has the grin. He doesn’t like bullies, but while he may not be all murder happy, he’s fully ready to smack a kid with the shield. 

“I really feel bad for Flash…” Peter groans into his hands. 

“You probably should be. I know what Pepper’s planning and… well, it’s going to be fun, trust me.” 

“But probably not fun for me, I take it?”

“Oh no, you’re going to hate it,” Bucky laughs. 

“I hate you all.” 

The next day during acadec team practice, Mr. Harrison announces that the team has the rare and very special opportunity to tour not just Stark Industries but to meet the Avengers as well. 

“I am so fucked…” Peter groans, hitting the table with his forehead as MJ and Ned grin in cruel triumph.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the field trip begins!!! about time, right?? sheesh i just want to post the next chapter earlier because I want to get to the fun stuff already. I won't though ;)
> 
> TW: flash accuses Peter of using sexual favors to get into SI.

“Hi there! You must be the Midtown group, right?” A cheerful tour guide greets the team as they step off the bus a week after Peter’s doom was sealed with a signature on a permission slip. Pepper drew a face at the end of said signature, a wink and a smile for Mr. Harrison who knew she’d set the damn thing up. 

Mr. Harrison had been so happy, and so had everyone else. Ned wouldn’t stop talking about it for the entire week, and his energy was sort of contagious. It always was, that’s why Peter would text him asking about something he loved whenever he was sad. Ned excited made everyone else excited. Even MJ was smiling behind her book after the announcement. 

It had been hard to feel mad about the trip when it made his friends so happy, and he’d been plenty distracted from his own dread by Loki coming. They’d waged a prank war against Clint, Bucky, and Sam all week together. It was epic. Bucky still had pink hair, and Clint was still finding photos of Danny Devito in his things, even four days later. He hasn’t even found half of them yet!

But now that he’s here, staring up at his home with his eager classmates, faced his family meeting his team… 

This is not going to go well. 

“Yes, and you are?” Mr. Harrison smiles politely at their guide. Peter’s never seen her before, even though he knew most of the people in the tower after two years of running around it as a proper preteen should. While also helping interns with projects and fixing their coding that would not work. 

“I’m Astrid. You’re Mr. Harrison, right?” He nods. “Wonderful! Well, all of you follow me inside and I’ll start explaining the rules and passing out security badges.” Astrid leads them into the lobby, leaving them by a ring of sofas to check in with the receptionist. His name is Sammy, and Peter loves him. He always has the best gossip from hearing conversations as people pass through the security terminals. 

“I guess we’ll all see what’s really going on with Penis and Stark now, huh? Bet he’s just like Stark, got here by going on his knees,” Flash snickers with one of his goons, just loud enough for Peter to hear, but quiet enough that Mr. Harrison, who was very distracted trying to prevent Betty from running up to every scientist or business person she recognized with her notebook and reporter-in-the-making questions. 

“I’d punch him, but I’m sure someone is going to do that for us,” MJ growls, glaring at Flash. Peter only knows two people who have more intimidating glares than MJ, and those are Natasha and Pepper. The three of them together would be disastrous. For everyone else, that is.

“I think they’ve made a kill list.” Peter sighs. “You’ll need to wait your turn.” 

Before MJ could respond, Astrid comes back with a shoebox full of little lanyards and cards. Her smile looks a little bit more forced than it had been. Sammy must have told her something bad. Maybe an explosion somewhere they were going to visit? That happens a bit more than it should… 

“Alright everyone, come take a card. When we go through the turnstiles, you’ll have to swipe it, and then do a thumb scan. Rather than print a badge for every one of the many guests we have, guest passes are synced when you first go through security with the specific guest, so badges can’t be shared. You’ll have to give them back at the end of the day. They’ll be counted so we’ll know if you steal, but just so you’re aware they clear once you leave and can’t be reused unless you check-in. Okay?” Astrid says as everyone takes a pass. Everyone but Peter that is. 

“Peter, you need a badge,” Mr. Harrison frowns. 

“Oh no, Peter doesn’t need one. He’s Stark family so he’s in the system and has full clearance to all areas of the tower.”

“Oh… right.” Mr. Harrison frowns. Peter’s not sure why he forgot that he was Tony’s son. Maybe he just didn’t believe him, like a lot of students and teachers haven’t. Even though Tony and the Avengers pick him up from school most days. Even though Tony and Pepper were there for him the first day.

It’s annoying that they don’t believe him… but he supposes it is a bit unbelievable. Tony Stark and Pepper Potts silently adopting an orphan boy, which is never used for publicity or leaked to the press somehow. Not even if it'd be the kind of good press only rivaled by them releasing their prosthetic limbs line (which Peter designed). They announced Morgan to the world, kind of had to with Tony being pregnant at parties and all. But not Peter. 

He can see why it’s difficult to accept for some people. Still hurts though. He thought that his favorite teacher at least would believe him. 

“Wait, even the Avenger’s floors?” Abe, a calm beta who Peter’s always liked, gasps in shock. Peter knew he was a massive Captain America fan, so he’s not surprised. 

“Yea,” Peter answers for Astrid. “You’ll be meeting Captain America later, by the way.” He’s positive Steve will be making an appearance. They all will, he’s sure. 

Abe almost passes out. It’s funny. 

“Okay, time for the rules,” Astrid claps her hands, putting the empty box to the side. “They are fairly simple. Don’t wander away from the group. Don’t take off your badges, our head of security gets really picky about that. Don’t bother any of the staff or interns unless you are told you can ask questions, and don’t touch anything. You’re a special tour so we’ll be going through some of the labs not normally shown on tours, meaning we won’t be behind viewing glass. Some of the materials they work with are dangerous, so do us a favor and keep your hands off. Also, all of you have signed NDAs. If anything you see winds up on the web, the legal team will go after you. Understand?” The class nods. 

“Excellent. The final rule is less of a rule and more of a reminder. Stark Industries has a strict Anti-bullying policy. Bigotry, bullying, harassment, or anything that might make someone feel unsafe will result in your expulsion from the building, a ban from ever working with Stark Industries, and potential legal action if deemed necessary. We take this very seriously, so if you are caught doing something more than once, or doing something inexcusable, then there are no second chances. SI is a safe place no matter what sexual orientation, gender, secondary gender, race, nationality, or social class you are. Are we clear?” She gives a harsh look to Flash. 

After getting the nods she wanted, Astrid leads them through the turnstiles, explaining briefly the clearance levels. Guests like the team are Level One, while Astrid has a… weirdly high clearance for a tour guide actually. She must do work elsewhere when she’s not doing this. Peter has a Gold clearance. The Avengers are all silver, and guests of them, or the Starks, are bronze. Everyone else is one through ten. 

He’s pretty sure Flash is going to break himself if he keeps fuming over Jarvis saying, “Peter Parker, Gold Clearance. Welcome home, Peter. Shall I inform Boss of your arrival?”

“Sure, but I’m pretty sure he knows already.” 

“Indeed he does.” Peter can hear the smirk in the AI’s voice. He may be a program, but Jarvis has always felt just as human as the rest of them. He’s just a bit more not human than Peter and Wanda and the other enhanced people in the tower. No biggie. 

Peter joins his team, Astrid giving him a nod. 

“Alright, now, we’ll be starting the day with Stark Industries things, and then after lunch at noon we’ll be transitioning to the particularly special part of your tour, Avengers related things. We’ll be seeing the Avengers museum before lunch though, so everything fits. First stop, Lab Sixteen.” 

The team piles into the elevator, the press of bodies and excited whispers and so many clashing scents nearly overwhelming Peter. But Ned gives his hand a tight squeeze, and MJ places herself in front of him so they’re barricading him the corner, where no one else can touch him or get too close, and he can focus on just their familiar scents. He has the best friends ever. 

Lab Sixteen is just a standard development lab, one of the two labs that are on the standard tours. Because of this, there’s a corridor with a glass wall separating the lab from the guests, with a locked door and a keypad needed to access the lab itself. The place usually works on Stark Phone upgrades that are already announced, like a better battery or improved camera. Things that can be told to tours without any consequences, but still look and sound interesting enough to please them. 

Astrid gives the usual script about the lab and how development labs work on new technology or improvements to older models so they can be re-released later. She also talks about some of the more advanced labs work on building the designs the research labs create and turning research and theory into reality. 

Then it’s up to Lab 21, which is set up the same as the first, for tours, only it’s a research lab instead of development. This one deals with potential sustainable energy alternatives that might be able to be mass-produced. Looks interesting to the public while reminding them that SI is definitely not what they had been. 

Peter went on a tour when he’d first come here, just for fun, and asked Pepper why they only showed the most boring of the labs. It’s fun knowing the PR reasons behind it all, though, even if he knows there is so much better stuff here.

“Okay, now, I’m sure you’re all bored with the standard tour things,” Astrid smirks. “So we’re going to head somewhere special now… the Green Lab.” 

Fuck.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the record, I actually really love Mr. Harrison, but it was just more convenient to have him be an asshat in this story. Sorry for doing you dirty, Mr. Harrison, but the Plot comes first. Anyways, second to last chapter is here!! Chapter eight will be up Friday, and i'm so excited for it. Jeez a posting schedule is a pain in the ass sometimes... Anyways, enjoy!
> 
> TW: none! But brace yourselves for next chapter.

The Green Lab. Dr. Banner’s lab, where he works with his personal interns on his own projects. He’s also got a private lab up by Tony and Peter’s, but he only uses it for his side projects or things he’s not sure will actually work. Or potentially dangerous stuff, but that’s just because the private lab floors have the best accident gear in the building. For good reason. Peter’s also found him sleeping in there on more than one occasion after a particularly social day when he just needed alone time. Peter knows the feeling. 

He’s positive Bruce will be in there. He almost always is. But it’s not Bruce he’s worried about. Bruce is far too worried about hurting people and confrontation to actually start something. It’s just a concern as to who else is going to be there. 

They enter the lab, Astrid reminding everyone not to touch anything or bother anyone there. 

That all goes out the window once everyone sees Dr. Banner. He’s pretty sure Ned broke a glass with that high pitched shriek. Everyone surges forward. Everyone except Peter, that is. Luckily Bruce seemed to have been expecting it, Jarvis must have told them they were coming, so he’s braced and ready to go with the onslaught of questions.

Except, he ignores them all. 

“Peter! How are you doing?” Bruce calls out over the team, who all pause and stare.

“I’m alright Bruce.” Peter gives a tight-lipped smile. 

“Oh good, I was waiting for you to get up here, I need your help with something. I’ll answer all your questions once we get this sorted, it’s time-sensitive,” Bruce gives an apologetic shrug to the class, before waving Peter forward to look at the equations he’s got up on a hologram. They’re complicated, sure, probably beyond any of the aca-dec team. But nothing Bruce couldn’t handle. 

Which means he’s definitely trying to make Peter look good. Damn him.

“Here you go,” Peter adjusts the chemical equation, showing it to Bruce, who does a pretty impressive display of shock. 

“How didn’t I see that? Thank you Peter, we really needed that. Christine, get started on synthesizing this, Lab 57 needs it by three o’clock or they’ll have our heads,” Bruce passes the equation to a slightly frazzled looking intern, who quickly disappears into the side room with the big air filter. 

“Okay! So, who has questions?” He then turns to the class, the fakest smile Peter has ever seen him make on his face. Tony definitely set him up for this. And Tony is definitely getting his ear chewed out for this. 

There’s a lot of hand waving and “me, me, me!” But in the end, Bruce calls on Susie. 

“How do you get to be an intern here? Without nepotism, that is?” Susie shoots Peter a pleasant smile. 

“You’ll have to ask Pepper or Tony for the requirements later, I don’t know how the process works. Pepper just shows me a handful of interns who she thinks would work well here and I select who I want to work with. Or I steal from other departments.” 

“What project that you’re working on do you think is the most promising for future generations?” Betty asks next, pencil in hand. 

“Well, Peter gave me the idea to see about using gamma rays as an energy source. It’s in the very early stages of development right now, and we can’t promise it will wind up working out, but if it does it’ll be a huge leap for sustainable energy.” 

“It was mostly Ned’s idea, actually, I just brought it up,” Peter shrugs. Ned flushes bright red, mouth working as he tried to find something to say.

“It was?” Bruce’s eyes widen. “You’re Ned?” Ned nods, eyes bulging. “Do you mind if I talk to you later? After your tour? Peter can bring you back.”

MJ has to elbow him before he’s able to squeak out, “Yes sir, Dr. Banner sir!”

“What does Pen - What does Parker really do here?” Flash interrupts. 

“Well, other than being family, he helps out in half the labs, heads entire projects, some of which have already been released actually, helps Tony and me out regularly, works on Avengers gear… stuff like that. He’s a huge help, I really don’t know what this place would do without him. The number of explosions has been decreased by… what was it?”

“Twenty-four percent, according to Happy’s latest report.” 

“Yes, that.” Bruce smiles. “Anything else?” A few more questions get thrown out, most about his work, which makes Peter infinitely grateful for the fact he happens to go to a STEM school. Bruce hates when people ask him about the Hulk, but the nerds he goes to school with are much more interested in his scientific breakthroughs. He really doesn’t want to have Bruce have a panic attack during something he probably didn’t want to do. 

“Okay everyone, we’ve got to get going if we want to have time at the Avengers museum! Say thank you to Dr. Banner, and we’ll head out.” Astrid claps her hands. Everyone thanks Dr. Banner, reminding Peter of how Pepper gets Morgan to use her manners, before making their way back to the elevator. Astrid shares a wink with Bruce, that leaves Peter suspicious. 

She’s in on this. Actually, that’s probably why they didn’t have a normal tour guide handle this. Although they aren’t the first tour to have a special Avengers aspect, they are the first to have the Avenger’s Family Revenge Plan scheduled in. 

“Have a good field trip, Peter,” Bruce smiles. 

“When should I be bracing myself?” 

“Not until after lunch, they’re gathering evidence right now. Just in case they need it.” Bruce shakes his head. “They’re doing a little Q&A for your class, so get ready for that.” 

“Who’s going to be at that?” 

“Everyone but Bucky, Sam, me, and Clint. But Clint will be in the vents, I’m sure.” 

“Even Wanda?” Peter whines. 

“I think she’ll be sitting with you, not on stage? I don’t know I stopped paying attention. You know how Tony gets off track.” Bruce shrugs. 

“Peter! What did Ms. Astrid say about getting separated from the group? It’s time to stop bothering Dr. Banner,” Mr. Harrison storms over, grabbing Peter’s arm. “I’m so sorry, Dr. Banner.” 

“No, no, I asked him to wait,” Bruce frowns. 

“Let the boy go, teacher boy,” Astrid practically appears behind them, startling Peter even with his spider-sense. No one can ever sneak up on him, not even people he trusts. If it’s not his spider-sense, then it’s their scent, or the sound of their feet on the floor, or their breathing. 

He must just be distracted by the fact that Mr. Harrison still won’t let him go. He doesn’t like people grabbing him, but he doesn’t want to tear himself out of his grip and expose his strength. Mr. Harrison, for being a nerdy teacher, is not out of shape and from an outside perspective, Peter shouldn’t be able to pull away. So he can’t. 

Even if it makes him want to cry. Even if his skin is crawling at someone who he doesn’t fully like touching him. Even if the stares from his teammates, the interns, Bruce, everyone, leave him wanting to retreat to his bedroom and never come out, even though he can’t because he’s with his class and not all of them believe he lives here.

“I said, let him go!” Astrid slams her hand down onto Mr. Harrison’s wrist, knocking it away from him with ease. Everyone gapes at her as she steps between Peter and his teacher, a pleasantly fake smile back on her face. “We don’t appreciate people touching others without permission. Now, shall we continue?” 

“Y-yes…” Mr. Harrington frowns, following Astrid back to the group. Peter raises an eyebrow, looking to Bruce for an explanation. He shrugs, though his smirk told Peter he definitely did know what was happening. 

There was probably no use trying to figure this out. He knew his family would never put him at risk. Embarrassing him, possibly, but it’s not like he cared about what his teammates thought of him anyways. So he might as well go along with it.

He trusts them enough for that. He does not trust them enough to think they might not kill Flash, but hopefully, he can keep his mouth shut enough that they don’t realize how bad he can be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spoiler, but Flash will not keep his mouth shut. Not that we expected him too, because what kind of field trip trope would this be without Flash being a dumbass?


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's the last chapter!!! yayayayay!!!! I hope yall enjoyed this section of the series! Thank you all for reading and commenting, I appreciate every single one more than you know. I'm so so glad people are enjoying this, because i had tons of fun writing this whole series! For the next installment... Harley's here!!!! 
> 
> TW: panic attack. Also, the attempted rape is in this one. it literally doesn't get farther than cornering and verbal sexual harassment and gets stopped real damn quick, but big heads up for that. With it, there's someone attempting to record it, and the teacher doesn't believe Peter when he says it happens, so heads up for that part too. Again, it does not go farther than cornering and suggestive language because peter is a BAMF and the Avengers are there, but it is clear what is happening (so i guess is graphic then?). You know your limits, so please stay safe. 
> 
> If you want to skip all of the triggering stuff (except for the aftermath of the panic attack, sorry), then skip the portion between the ******s.

They get to the Avenger’s museum without much more drama, but Flash is giving Peter a look that probably won’t end well for either of them. Astrid tells them they’ll have forty-five minutes to look around. She gives a pointed look to Mr. Harrison when she adds, “It should be an hour, but we will have to make adjustments to stay on schedule.” He has the decency to look sheepish at that, but Peter isn’t sure if he actually regrets anything. 

The class disbands, with MJ insisting on them visiting the Black Widow section first. The glass case, painted and lit with red and black, is like all the other sections. They are lit and accented with the colors associated with the hero displayed and have a panel listing general facts, powers, and fun facts. Inside the cases were old uniforms, old weapons, replications of important objects, that sort of thing. 

Peter has never actually visited the museum. Why bother when he’s worked on half the gear himself and has hugged every single person with a display in here? 

Well, except for Pietro. He’s still sad he never got to meet Wanda’s twin. 

Natasha’s display is interesting, he supposes, though it’s so surface-level even someone who doesn’t know her well would notice. Nothing about the Red Room, nothing about Clint or the KGB, or what her personality is like. Some things on it are blatant lies, even the things Peter thinks shouldn’t have to be lies. 

“Aunt Nat’s favorite color is peach, why do they list it as red?” Peter frowns. “And her hair color is naturally blonde, not red. She just likes herself with red hair better.” 

“She is a spy, so I guess this is just part of her cover?” MJ shrugs. “It’s a lot less interesting than I hoped it’d be.”

“Hey, let’s look at the Iron Man one!” Ned grabs Peter’s hand and drags him to the red and gold display for his dad. Surprisingly, it’s humble, meaning Pepper definitely had final say over it, not Tony. Although Tony always feels like he isn’t good enough or hasn’t done enough, he never, ever lets that show to anyone but the Avengers and Co, covering up his insecurities with flamboyance and fake confidence. The fact that this panel admits that he has anxiety and PTSD from Afghanistan and the Battle of New York means he had nothing to do with it. 

Though Peter remembers helping him build the replica of the first Iron Man suit that’s displayed, sans arc reactor, of course. He’d been so annoyed he had to remake it, complaining the whole time to himself about how “why didn’t we adjust the weight here, it’s so unbalanced, no wonder I fell like that…” But the PR team insisted it was unedited. 

Tony hates having people see his prototypes. He only let’s Pepper see the first version, won’t even let her show investors until it's at the second or third match.

“Whoa, Peter, did you know that your dad invented an element? Why didn’t he write a paper on that?” Ned cries. 

“He kind of invented it while he was dying, and he didn’t have the licensing to build the particle collider he used, which was far from actually stable considering it was balanced on books. He never likes writing papers anyways, he prefers to let Pepper patent it and call it a day.” Peter shrugs. Pepper told him the story of the new element one day when Tony was begging her to let him build another particle collider for “funsies.” 

Peter then joined in on the begging. Now there’s a new Stark Industries building in the making for it, fully authorized and approved. There’s probably about two weeks before it’s finished safety inspections and final checks.

“He should have written a paper…” Ned pouts. He and MJ get into a slight argument over whether any contributions made by Stark could make up for his company’s decades for weapons manufacturing, but Peter just zones out on that. MJ loves going off on Tony, even though she begrudgingly admits he’s a good dad. It’s better Peter doesn’t listen then risk getting mad and causing a fight with one of his few friends. 

Instead, he says he’s going to look at some other exhibits and goes wandering. There’s a Captain America display next to a White Wolf one, the fact they are mates proudly listed on their panels. Wanda’s Scarlet Witch display is next to a blue and silver one for Quicksilver. Even if he only helped in one fight, he wouldn’t be forgotten. He’s not sure if Wanda knows about this, but he’ll be sure to tell her. 

And then, nearly tucked into the corner, he spots a red and blue display, smaller than the rest. He has to choke back a surprised cry once he sees who it’s for. 

Spider-Man, the strange web-slinging hero who showed up to help save hundreds of civilians during the Battle of New York, but who was never seen again. There’s speculation on the panel that he may have been injured or lost during the fight, but that without him, the death toll would have been exponentially higher. There’s a video playing next to the panel, rather than a display case, showing shaky camera footage of Peter swinging above crowds and pulling people from buildings and hauling a car off a collapsing bridge. He’s in his red and blue suit that he designed for emergencies, though it’s been updated since the fight. 

At the end of the video, there’s an interview with Tony from the aftermath of the fight, with the reporter asking him who the hero with the spider on his chest was. Tony smiles at the camera, full of pride, but also deep annoyance behind his eyes. 

“That’s Spider-Man. We didn’t know of his existence before he helped us out, but we are all immensely grateful for what he did.” 

“Will we be seeing more of this Spider-Man?” The reporter looks to someone behind the camera, a nearly giddy look on her face.

“Not for a while. He’s been benched for an indeterminate amount of time. I’m afraid I can’t answer any more questions on him right now.” The interview is cut off by a black screen with the words “Spider-Man will return… Later,” with an emoticon wink at the end. 

Peter snorts. He know exactly who added that screen. 

******

“Hey Penis.” Peter sighs, turning to face Flash’s angry grin. 

“What do you want Flash?”

“I want you to tell me the truth. How’d you get Dr. Banner to act like he knew you? Huh? What the hell do you really do here, because we both know you’re too much of a fucking dumbass to help out in Stark Industries labs, and I bet Tony Stark forgot you existed the second he found you.” 

“I didn’t do anything. I’ve known Bruce since Tony adopted me. I help in the labs all the time, and Tony definitely hasn’t forgotten me.” Peter shakes his head. He’s getting fed up with Flash, especially knowing that he’s going to get his ass handed to him later. 

“You dirty liar.” Flash shoves him back against the wall, hard enough the TV screen rattles. The edge of the panel on Spider-Man bites into his scalp, which is still slightly less irritating than Flash’s breath. 

“Believe it or not, Flash, but it’s true.” 

“Bullshit. What, do you lie to them? Let them have fun with you? You’re an omega, I wouldn’t be surprised. If your dad is Tony Stark, then I bet he gave you all the lessons on being a good whore you could need.” Flash laughs, pressing closer to him, his arm pinning Peter to the wall. He could get Flash off him, has to dig his nails into his palms to prevent himself from doing it, but he needs to keep the truth hidden. 

“Shut the hell up and let me go, Flash.” Peter growls. 

“Or what?” Flash takes one more step forward, his scent turning dark and dangerous and so very, very _wrong_.

That's it.

Peter knees Flash in the groin, sliding under his arm and slamming his face into the wall, his arm now tucked behind his back. All it’d take to pop it out of its socket is the slightest press. All it’d take to knock Flash out is one good hit. He could get the bastard to leave him alone forever if he just pulled out the knife he always keeps in his waistband. It wouldn’t be hard. 

“Or what, Flash?” Peter hisses into his ear, grinning at the sob the alpha lets out. “What were you going to do to me huh? There’s our whole class here, and Jarvis watching everything. What were you going to do?” 

“Fuck off!” Flash jerks in his grip. Peter lets him go, half throwing him to the side. When he turns, he spots Susie, pale as can be, her phone shaking in her hand. She’d recorded it all. Was going to record it all. He’s not even remotely surprised. 

“What the hell is going on here?” Mr. Harrison roars, storming around the bed with MJ and Ned following him, Ned looking terrified, MJ looking ready for murder. 

“Peter just attacked Flash, sir! I saw it all!” Susie hurries to say. 

“Flash?” Mr. Harrison frowns, turning to the kid who’s sniveling on the ground while Peter stands above him, hands still in fists and body still trembling with adrenaline and the quickly sinking-in fear. 

“She’s right! He just lashed out, for no reason!”

“No he didn’t, you cornered him!” MJ snaps. “We saw you!”

“I just wanted to ask him what time it was!” Flash whines. “And he pinned me against the wall!”

“Peter, I can’t believe you. It is an honor to be here, and you start fights? Do you know how embarrassing this is to Midtown?” Mr. Harrison grabs his collar, ready to drag him to the elevator. 

But Peter is too keyed up, too close to a panic attack, and his teacher grabbing him just shatters the walls he’d been trying to keep up.

Peter breaks Mr. Harrison’s hold, not caring if he uses too much strength and sure as hell not bothering to try and fight unless he has to, just running for the private elevator in the back, desperate to get upstairs, to safety, to his family he just needs out of here, fuck the field trip, he can’t - he can’t - he can’t stop crying and shaking and - 

Peter crashes into someone, crying even harder as he does, thrashing and trying to get out but too panicked to do much good. Steady hands rest on his shoulders, keeping him upright, pulling him into a hug even as he struggles harder.

He snaps. 

**********

“I’ve got you, kid. It’s okay, I’ve got you,” Tony whispers, running a hand through Peter’s hair. Once the familiar scent and voice processes, wood smoke, and honey, Peter half collapses. He doesn't fight anymore, just starts crying harder, clinging to his dad’s shirt. 

“It’s okay, маленький паук, we’re here.” Natasha rubs his back, stepping in front of both him and Tony when Mr. Harrison and the others come rushing forward. Peter tries to slow his crying, not wanting to be this vulnerable in front of his class. It’s not easy. He still keeps his face mostly hidden in Tony’s shirt, only peeking out just enough to see what’s happening and who’s there. 

Natasha, Tony, Steve, and Bucky apparently came down to save him, probably alerted by Jarvis to the problem. Bucky rolls his metal arm, letting the joints readjust in a way that’s practically useless, but a good intimidation strategy. He makes it very clear he’s got a gun on his hip too, flesh hand resting on it. Normally Steve would throw a fit over intimidating kids, but at the moment, it seems more like Bucky’s holding Steve back than the other way around. He’s just planted himself by Tony’s shoulder, eyes burning and anger blooming in the air, doing his best “you pissed off Captain fucking America, good luck,” face. 

“Loki?” Steve looks over at Astrid, who’s casually sauntering into the room with a cocky grin. She glitters for a bit, growing into none other than the Goddess of Mischief, making sure to fluff her hair out before stepping up to the group of Avengers. 

“Yes?” 

“Care to explain what just happened?”

“Why? I know Stark’s voice in the wall showed you. You know, I want a raise for not stabbing these kids before you got here. A tour guide really has a shamefully low paycheck for what they put up with.” Loki sighs, glaring at Mr. Harrison, who suddenly looks a lot more terrified at the thought of having acted how he did in front of the notoriously murder happy Asgardian. 

“Just wanted to clarify we saw what we saw. You did threaten Peter sexually, didn’t you?” Steve sics his glare on Flash. Mr. Harrison gives a strangled gasp of surprise. Ned facepalms in the corner, while MJ rubs her temples. 

“Are you sure we can’t kill them, Tony?” Bucky whines. 

“I’ve got a better idea.” Tony grins. “Nat, how you continue the tour. I trust nothing else will happen under your watch?”

“Well, if something does, you know I won’t be caught.” Nat smiles. “Midtown, let’s go get some lunch. Everyone but the bleach blonde bitch, Eugene, and the middle-aged crisis, follow me.”

“I need to chaperone…” Mr. Harrison trails off at the glare Natasha gives him. 

“Cap, Robocop, you want to handle these three? Take them to Happy. Tell him Protocol Punch the Pervert for the greasy one, and Take Out the Trash for the others.” 

“Sure thing. Follow me?” Steve gestures to the entrance, Bucky following behind with a look that makes it very clear that it is not a request. 

“As for you kid… I think this field trip is officially over, don’t you?” Tony looks down at him, giving his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. 

“Yes please.” Peter sniffles, rubbing his eyes.

“Come on, I think cocoa and a movie are in order.” Tony leads him up to their floors. And if Peter cries into his hot cocoa and clings to his dad, well, that’s his business. 

But it’s okay. He knows it’ll be okay. 

He is a Stark, after all.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments, kudos, keyboard smashes, prolonged screaming, questions, bloodline curses, emojis, and all other interactions highly appreciated and welcomed! 
> 
> However I do NOT take criticism, be it "constructive" or not, or any suggestions. Please feel free to guess where this might go, I love to hear your predictions, but since this work is completely finished, I don't want to disappoint people with being unable to work in their (often really good) suggestions! NO criticism is taken because this is just for fun and, frankly, I'm in the middle of publishing a novel. I do not care. Thank you for respecting my boundaries!


End file.
